DC Comic’s new franchise includes teenaged versions of female super heroes

DC comics is creating a new world of superheroes, this one aimed at girls aged 6-12.

Super Hero Girls is DC comic’s newest animated venture and it follows the lives of teenaged main characters Wonderwoman, Batgirl, Supergirl, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Bumblebee (the only Black girl), and Katana (the only Asian girl) as they save the day and presumably their social lives at Super Hero High school. Combining some of the recognizable imagery of popular superheroes with the cheesy pop music characteristic of commercially manufactured fun for girls, Super Hero Girls isn’t so much radical as it is light gender inclusivity with a splash of cute.

Everyone wants to cash in on “girl power.” And in true corporate commodity fashion, DC is going all out. According to USA today, in addition to the web-series, Super Hero Girls is set to include straight to video animations, a specialized LEGO set, graphic novels, social media profiles on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, TV specials, and other action figures – also called action dolls, because… girls, duh – (made by Mattel… yes, Barbie’s Mattel).

Mattel saw Super Hero Girls as an opportunity to create the first real action figures geared toward girls but also design dolls that “are these really strong, athletic physiques and have great qualities and represent female empowerment,” explains Lisa McKnight, Mattel’s senior vice president for marketing in North America.

Barbie may have high heels and killer couture, but the Super Hero Girls stand tall on their own — in more ways than one.

“These girls are practical,” McKnight says. “They know that if they themselves are going to role-play being the superhero and save the day, they need to be in functional fashions. They can’t have a lot of adornments that can get caught on something. They want to be in comfortable footwear. So we definitely tapped into that.”

DC claims to be responding directly to the wants of fans to have more representation of women and girls in their products… which just started happening apparently… in 2015… 80 years after the company first went into business… At any rate, I think the new school of nerdy-cool teeny boppers are going to love it.